Don’t say goodbye to summer just yet. Grab a few CPK frozen pizzas, whip up this easy mango, avocado and black bean salad, and you’ll be just minutes away from a backyard pizza party!

This post was sponsored by Nestlé’s Balance Your Plate. Thank you for supporting the brands that make Healthy Delicious possible.

I can’t believe Labor Day has already come and gone – wasn’t it just Memorial Day like two weeks ago? Thankfully, even though the symbolic end of summer is here, we should still have a few weeks of nice weather ahead of us. I don’t know about you, but I’m determined to make the most of them.

Shorter evenings, kids back in school, and weekends jam-packed with fall activities means things are a little more difficult, but with a little planning (and a few shortcuts) you can throw a casual Friday-night party that leaves the weekends open for your other responsibilities.

What better way is there to kick off a weekend than a backyard pizza party? String up some twinkle lights to help combat the early sunset, grab a few frozen pizzas, make a giant salad, and you’ll be ready to kick back, relax, and enjoy those last moments of summer.

We love these California Pizza Kitchen frozen pizzas. For us, they’re nostalgic – when we were engaged, we lived right across the street from one of their restaurants and we ate them pretty often. We loved their crispy crust and creative toppings. And we always paired our pizza with a salad to help balance out our plates and make sure we got in our veggies!

Now that we’re back in New York, we know we can get that same great taste right in the freezer case. These pizzas taste great and are made with no artificial flavors and a preservative-free crust. We’re partial to the thin-crust varieties, but they also have organic and gluten-free options so there’s something to satisfy everyone.

These pizzas are a great time saver and are the perfect base for a meal that can be paired with a nutritious and simple side dish. The crispy thin crust BBQ chicken pizza, made with white meat chicken and smoked gouda, is one of our favorites.  You can pair it with almost any green salad, but the tangy barbecue sauce goes especially well with this easy mango, avocado, and black bean salad that can be whipped up in the time it takes for the pizza to bake.

Mango adds sweetness to both the salad and the dressing, while avocado contributes creaminess and healthy fats. Black beans up the protein and help make the salad feel more substantial. I toss everything with peppery arugula and dress it with spicy-sweet mango vinaigrette to make it extra special.

Mango, Avocado and Black Bean Salad

Yield: 4

Prep Time: 10 minutes

As written, this salad will serve four people as a side dish. You can easy double or triple the recipe if you have more people on your guest list.

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Ingredients

• 1 mango
• 1 avocado
• 1/2 small red onion
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1/2 jalapeño pepper (optional)
• 1 lime, juiced
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• salt and pepper
• 4 cups baby arugula
• 1 cup canned black beans, rinsed and drained

Instructions

Use a glass to remove the peel from the mango, collecting the juices. Thinly slice the mango.
Peel and thinly slice the avocado and onion.

To make the dressing, finely mince the garlic and jalapeño (if using). Add to a serving bowl and whisk in the lime juice, mango juice, and olive oil. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Add the arugula to the serving bowl and toss to combine with the dressing. Mix in the beans, and half of the avocado and mango. Top the salad with the remaining avocado and mango slices.

Notes

 

Nutrition Information:

Amount Per Serving: Calories: 318 Total Fat: 21g Saturated Fat: 3g Cholesterol: 0mg Sodium: 561mg Fiber: 10g Sugar: 13g Protein: 6g